Win Cash and Publication
Many Categories for True Stories
Submit Your Story for the Solas Awards Here

Twentieth Annual Solas Awards Winners

The Travelers’ Tales editors and this year’s returning judge Scott Dominic Carpenter announced the winners of the Twentieth Annual Solas Awards for Best Travel Story of the Year on March 2, 2026. Grand Prize winner Stephen Carr Hampton collected $1000 and the gold award for “Going to Water,” his moving account as a Cherokee man returning to his ancestral home in Tennessee. Gary Singh won the silver award and $750 for “Truth Is the Timeless One,” a reflective essay on the intergenerational effects of immigration. Paulette Perhach took the bronze award and $500 for “Boob Deck,” her hilarious tale of taking charge while under the leering gaze of men.

Scores of entries in 20 categories kept the judges busy. As usual, not every story that deserved an award received one. Here’s the complete list of winners. Winning stories will be posted as Editors’ Choice stories on TravelersTales.com, and may appear in future Travelers’ Tales books.

Note: Participants often wonder about how to make their writing better, and for the first time, our guest judge is willing to provide feedback on your submission. (There’s a small fee to cover his time.) For more information, go to: sdcarpenter.com.

Twenty-First Annual Solas Awards Open for Entries

Deadline for the Twenty-First Annual Solas Awards is September 21, 2026. The competition is year-round, however, so submit your stories any time. Winners of the Twentieth Annual Solas Awards will be announced on or about March 1, 2026.

See the complete list of winners in the Twentieth Annual Solas Awards.

See the winners in all annual Solas Awards competitions.

Travelers’ Tales Sponsors Solas Awards

Award-winning publisher Travelers’ Tales is the sponsor of the Solas Awards, an annual competition to honor excellence in travel writing.

Extraordinary stories about travel and the human spirit have been the cornerstones of our books since 1993. With the Solas Awards we honor writers whose work inspires others to explore. We’re looking for the best stories about travel and the world funny, illuminating, adventurous, uplifting, scary, inspiring, poignant stories that reflect the unique alchemy that occurs when you enter unfamiliar territory and begin to see the world differently as a result. We hope these awards will be a catalyst for those who love to leave home and tell others about it.

Dates: You can enter year-round. The current competition closes on September 21, 2026.

Win Cash and Publication
Many Categories for True Stories

Grand Prize for Best Travel Story of the Year:

$1,000 Gold
$750 Silver
$500 Bronze

Awards in Categories:

Bragging rights for Gold, Silver, and Bronze (no cash awards in categories).